Marker for filing systems



Jan? 1940- c. H. TOMKINSON 2,185,696

MARKER FOR FILING SYSTEMS Filed July 12, 1938 K a Y: yENTOR ATZI'ORNEY Patented Jan. 2, 1940 MARKER FOR FILING SYSTEMS Charles H. Tomkinson, Washington, D. 0., assignor to International Business Machines Corporation, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application July 12, 1938, Serial No. 218,796

1 Claim. (Cl. 2356l.12)

This invention relates to a perforated record card and more particularly to a marking card used in the separation within a file drawer of groups of related tabulating cards. Tabulating cards known as the "Hollerith" cards are divided into columns which are sub-divided into index point positions in which data may be represented by perforations in selected index point positions. These cards are automatically fed through the feeding mechanisms of various accounting .machines to control operations, such as sorting, ac-

cumulating, printing and punching. when the cards are sub-divided intp related groups and when they are not used for controlling machine operations they are generally kept in file drawers. In order to keep the cards of one group separate from another, a so-called marker card is inserted in the drawer between the cards of one group and those of another, and such card is usually provided with a tab or extension extending beyond the top edge of the tabulating cards for ready identification.

In order for the tabulating cards to feed successiully through the various accounting machines, it is required that they be accurately constructed as to thickness. If the marker cards are madeof the same thickness as the tabulating cards, they may be fed through the accounting machine along with the tabulating cards but it 30 has been found that a card of such thickness has a more limited period of usefulness than is required of the marker card. To overcome this, marker cards have been provided of a greater thickness than the tabulating cards, but in such 5 case, it has been necessary before feeding the cards through the machines to remove the marker cards as they could not be handled by the machine, and to replace them afterwards.

It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a marker card which is of suflicient thickness and rigidity for the purposes for which it is required but which can be fed through the accounting machine along with the tabulating cards between which it is inserteddn 65 the file drawer.

Further objects of the instant invention reside in any novel feature .of construction or operation or novel combination of parts present in the embodiment of the invention described and 50 shown in the accompanying drawing whether within or without the scope of the appended claim and irrespective of other specific statements as to the scope of the invention contained herein.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 represents the essential elements of the card feeding mechanism of a tabulating machine.

Fig. 2 is a section taken along lines 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 shows a group or cards arranged in the 5 order in which they are to feed through the mechanism of Figs. 1 and 2.

Figs. 1 anti show the main elements of the card feeding mechanism such as disclosed in Patent No; 1,827,259 granted October 13, 1931, to J. 10

V R. Peirce /In such mechanism record cards generallyfi esignated flare placed in a hopper II and from the hopper they are advanced singly by a picker knife l2 which is reciprocated across the bottofn'of the stack by an arm i3. As the lowermost car advanced by the picker, it passes be ween a throat formed by plates I4 and i5 which are both adjustable each in the direction of its length, so that a throat opening only sumcient to permit passage of a single card is provided. The adjustability of plates l4 and I5 is due to the usual construction which comprises v screws passed through elongated openings in the plates, that for'plate ll being more clearly shown in Fig. 2. After the card passes through the throat, it is engaged by pairs of rollers generally designated I6 which cause the card to traverse a set of upper brushes U3 and a set of lower brushes LB in succession. Perforations in the record cards as they pass the sensing brushes will permit the completion of circuits for controlling the various operations of the machine. As shown in Fig. 2, the throat plates I4 and: I! are located substantially at the mid point of the card feeding mechanism so that a card is required to have no more thickness at the center than is required by the adjustment of the throat.

In Fig. 3, there is shown a number of cards the uppermost one of which constitutes a so-called marker card and which is made up of a card II of substantially the size and thickness of a regular tabulating card 10 and two end sections i9 and 2|! which are suitably secured to the card l8 as by cementing. The section i9 is provided with a tab 2| upon which identification data may be placed. The marker card may be placed between groups of tabulating cards It to separate a group of one classification from that of another and it may be kept in such order in suitable file drawers. when it is desired to run the cards through the machine, the marker card may remain in its position and will in turn be advanced by the picker knife l2. Due to the area of reduced thickness at its center, this card will properly feed through the throat plates I4 and I5 and the card will pass through the feeding mecha nism in the same manner as the tabulating cards. The marker card of such construction has been found to be very durable and saves considerable time in the handling of cards in that it need not be removed from the tile of cards preliminary to their feeding through the machine. This marker card may also be provided with perforations 23 difierentially positioned in various columns so that, as the card passes through the machine, it may control the closure of circuits through the sensing brushes in the same manner as the regular tabulating cards.

While there has been shown and described and pointed out'the fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to a single modification, it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and details of the device illustrated and in its operation may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. It is the intention therefore to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the 101- lowing claim.

What is claimed is:

In a tabulating card filing system in which a plurality of tabulating cards of like, uniform thickness are stacked for feeding through the restricted throat or a statistical machine, which throat permits only passage of cards of said uniform thickness, a marker card comprising a tabulating card to which are cemented sections 0! another card, said sections covering the entire surface of the card, except a narrow strip extending across the entire card in the direction of its feeding, said strip being located so as to be in line with the restricted throat of the statistical machine, so that the marker card may be led through the machine together with the tabulating cards and in the order o its filing.

CHARLES H. TOMKINSON. 

